Facts About Nutrition Labels

The nutrition label located on each and every food item,  will tell you all the information about that food.  For some however, this information isn't exactly that reader friendly.  Fear not, as it's actually easier than you  think.

Serving Size
This size is based on the amount people eat. Similar food items will have similar serving sizes, thus making it easier to compare 2 foods of the same category.

% Daily Value
This indicates how food will fit in a 2,000 calorie diet.  This will help you to understand if the food has a lot, or just a little of the important nutrients.

The middle section
The nutrients you'll find listed in the middle section are the ones that are most important to your health.
This information can help you to calculate your daily limit of fat, fiber, sodium, and other nutrients.

Vitamins & minerals
The percent daily value found here is the exact same as the U.S. Recommended Daily Allowance for vitamins  and minerals.

Now that you know what the nutrition label actually  means, it'll be a lot easy to eat healthy.  Eating  healthy is a great thing - especially when you use the nutrition label to assist you with your food choices.

Healthy Food Choices

Eating healthy is something we all would like to do,  although it can be hard.  In order to eat healthy, you must first make the right food choices.  Eating healthy is all about what you eat, which makes the choices very crucial to your results.

Grains

You should consume 6 ounces of grains per day.  To do this, you can eat 3 ounces of whole grain cereals, breads, rice, crackers, or pasta.  You can get an ounce of grains in  a single slice of bread, or 1 cut of cereal.

Vegetables

These should be varied, as you should eat 2 1/2 cups of them each day.  You should start eating more of the dark vegetables, such as broccili and spinach.  Carrots and sweet potatoes are good as well.  You should also eat more dry beans such as peas, pinto beans, and even kidney beans.

Fruits

Fruits are very important.  You should try to eat 2 cups of them each day.  Focus on eating a variety, such as fresh, frozen, canned, or even dried fruit.  You can  drink fruit juices as well, although you should use moderation when doing so.

Milk

Milk is your calcium rich friend.  For adults, 3 cups is the ideal goal.  For kids 2 - 8, 2 cups is where you want to be.  When choosing milk products or yogurt, you should go for fat-free or low-fat.  Those of you who don't like milk or can't have it, should go for lactose free products or other sources of calcium such as fortified foods and beverages.

Meat and beans

Eating 5 ounces a day is the ideal goal, as you should go lean with your protein.  When eating meat, always bake it, grill it, or broil it, as this will prevent grease from  adding to the equation.  You should vary your protein  as well, with more fish, beans, peas, and nuts.

When cooking your food, you should also limit solid fats such as butter, margarine, shortening, and lard.  These  foods may add flavor to your dishes, although they can  also help raise your cholesterol as well.  Therefore, you should try to add these foods and any foods that happen to contain them.

To help keep your saturated fat, trans fat, and sodium low,  you can check the nutrition facts label.  This label can  be found on the food package and will tell you all the  information you need to know about the food item.

By picking your foods wisely and watching what you eat, you'll help control your lifestyle.  Exercise is great as  well, as it goes along perfect with a healthy eating  lifestyle.  No matter what your age may be, eating healthy will help you keep your active lifestyle for years and  years - even help you and your health in the long run

as well.

Eating Healthy For Vegetarians

The vegetarian way of eating can be a very healthy style of eating.  The rules still apply with healthy eating,
although you should add variety, balance, and moderation.

A vegetarian is someone who avoids all types of meat,  whether it be hamburgers, hotdogs, chicken, or even fish. Vegetarians are also sometimes classified by the type of food they are or aren't willing to eat.  For example,  Lacto-ovo vegetarians will avoid animal flesh yet they  will eat eggs and most dairy products.  A Vegan on the  other hand, will avoid all food that has any trace of  animal origin.

Because they don't eat meet, vegetarians will often  wonder how they'll get enough protein.  Although you may not realize it, the average American actually consumes more protein than he actually needs.  For the lacto-ovo vegetarian, dairy products are an excellent source of  protein.  Vegans on the other hand, get their protein  from nuts, seeds, and soy products.

Along the lines of beans, there are several to choose  from, including green or red lentils, peanuts, split  peas, pinto, soy, kidney, and many more.  Some of them you are already familiar, such as kidney beans in  chili, refried beans in Mexican dishes, red beans and rice, and pinto beans.  Although some beans taste good as they are, others are available with different flavors to help enhance their taste.  Nuts are hihg in protein, although they deliver a lot more fat than beans, which means you should enjoy them in moderation.  By having  one cup of cooked beans, you'll get the same amount of
protein as eating two ounces of meat!

The nutrients of concern for vegans, who avoid all types of animal food, are vitamin B12, calcium, and vitamin D. In the average North American diet, the primary source for B12 is animals.  To have an adequate intake of B12,  vegans should reguarly consume vitamin B12 supplements or foods, which contain vitamin B12, such as soy products or milk.

For calcium, vegans can rely on orange juice or soy  milk, as they are fortified with calcium.  Beans and  leafy green vegetables will also contain some calcium as well.

Although all types of vegetarians rely on simple food  groups, controlling your vitamins and calcium intake is something you should always do.  This is very important for eating healthy, as well as staying healthy.  If you control what you eat, you'll have many years of healthy eating ahead of you.